Writers Guild Awards 2016: ‘Mr. Robot’ Up for Best Drama, No Love for John Oliver

The Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West announced today the nominations for the 2016 Writer's Guild Awards, which honors outstanding achievements in writing across several mediums.

Mr Robot finale
Rami Malek as Elliot in Mr. Robot. (Photo by: Sarah Shatz/USA Network)

The Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West announced today the nominations for the 2016 Writers Guild Awards, which honors outstanding achievements in writing across several mediums.

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On the TV side, there aren’t too many surprises to speak of. Well, unless you still want to have the “should Transparent be a comedy?” argument (it’s nominated here for Best Comedy). And, wait, not one nomination for Last Week Tonight with John Oliver? That…doesn’t seem right.

Fargo‘s incredible second season probably would have held its own in the Best Drama section, but instead is basically a lock to win the Long Form Adapted race up against HBO’s Show Me a Hero, which was a bore, and Lifetime’s The Red Tent. Lifetime’s come a long way, but not that far.

USA’s Mr. Robot and Netflix’s Unbreakable Kimmy Shmidt are up for both Best Drama and Best Comedy, respectively, and both grabbed “Best New Series” noms. AMC’s Better Call Saul also popped up in Best Drama and Best New but, and I never thought I’d say this, the hacker-drama from the USA network seemed to have far more impact this year than a Breaking Bad spinoff. TV is weird, man.

Here’s a full list of all the nominees:

DRAMA SERIES

The Americans, Written by Peter Ackerman, Joshua Brand, Joel Fields, Stephen Schiff, Lara Shapiro, Joe Weisberg, Tracy Scott Wilson, Stuart Zicherman; FX

Better Call Saul, Written by Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Gennifer Hutchison, Bradley Paul, Thomas Schnauz, Gordon Smith; AMC

Game of Thrones, Written by David BenioffBryan CogmanDave Hill, D.B. Weiss; HBO

Mad Men, Written by Lisa Albert, Semi Chellas, Jonathan Igla, Janet Leahy, Erin Levy, Tom Smuts, Robert Towne, Matthew Weiner, Carly Wray; AMC

Mr. Robot, Written by Kyle Bradstreet, Kate Erickson, Sam Esmail, David Iserson, Randolph Leon, Adam Penn, Matt Pyken; USA

COMEDY SERIES

Broad City, Written by Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, Naomi Ekperigin, Ilana Glazer, Abbi Jacobson, Chris Kelly, Anthony King, Jen Statsky; Comedy Central

Silicon Valley, Written by Amy Aniobi, Alec Berg, Carrie Kemper, Sonny Lee, Dan Lyons, Carson Mell, Dan O’Keefe, Clay Tarver, Ron Weiner; HBO

Transparent, Written by Arabella Anderson, Bridget Bedard, Micah Fitzerman-Blue, Noah Harpster, Ethan Kuperberg, Ali Liebegott, Our Lady J, Faith Soloway, Jill Soloway; Amazon Studios

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Written by Emily Altman, Jack Burditt, Robert Carlock, Azie Mira Dungey, Tina Fey, Lauren Gurganous, Charla Lauriston, Sam Means, Dan Rubin, Meredith Scardino, Allison Silverman, Lon Zimmet; Netflix

Veep, Written by Simon Blackwell, Jon Brown, Kevin Cecil, Roger Drew, Peter Fellows, Neil Gibbons, Rob Gibbons, Sean Gray, Callie Hersheway, Armando Iannucci, Sean Love, Ian Martin, Georgia Pritchett, David Quantick, Andy Riley, Tony Roche, Will Smith; HBO

NEW SERIES

 Better Call Saul, Written by Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Gennifer Hutchison, Bradley Paul, Thomas Schnauz, Gordon Smith; AMC

 Bloodline, Written by Jonathan Glatzer, Carter Harris, Glenn Kessler, Todd A. Kessler, Addison McQuigg, Arthur Phillips, Jeff Shakoor, Daniel Zelman; Netflix

 The Last Man On Earth, Written by Andy Bobrow, Liz Cackowski, Erik Durbin, Will Forte, Kira Kalush, Matt Marshall, Tim McAuliffe, David Noel, Erica Rivinoja, John Solomon, Emily Spivey; Fox

 Mr. Robot, Written by Kyle Bradstreet, Kate Erickson, Sam Esmail, David Iserson, Randolph Leon, Adam Penn, Matt Pyken; USA

 Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Written by Emily Altman, Jack Burditt, Robert Carlock, Azie Mira Dungey, Tina Fey, Lauren Gurganous, Charla Lauriston, Sam Means, Dan Rubin, Meredith Scardino, Allison Silverman, Lon Zimmet; Netflix

 LONG FORM ORIGINAL

 American Horror Story: Hotel, Written by Brad Falchuk, John J. Gray, Todd Kubrak, Crystal Liu, Ned Martel, Tim Minear, Ryan Murphy, Jennifer Salt, James Wong; FX

 Flesh and Bone, Written by Bronwyn Garrity, Jami O’Brien, Adam Rapp, Moira Walley-Beckett, David Wiener; Starz

 Saints & Strangers, Written by Seth Fisher, Walon Green, Chip Johannessen, Eric Overmyer; National Geographic Channel

 Sons of Liberty, Written by Stephen David, Kirk Ellis, David C. White; History Channel

 LONG FORM ADAPTED

 Fargo, Written by Steve Blackman, Bob DeLaurentis, Noah Hawley, Ben Nedivi, Matt Wolpert, Based on the film Fargo; FX

The Red Tent, Written by Elizabeth Chandler, Anne Meredith, Based on the book The Red Tent by Anita Diamant; Lifetime

Show Me A Hero, Written by David Simon, William F. Zorzi, Based on the book by Lisa Belkin; HBO

SHORT FORM NEW MEDIA – ORIGINAL

“Back to Reality” (Weight), Written by Daryn Strauss; weighttheseries.com

“Born This Way” (Anyone But Me), Written by Susan Miller; hulu.com

SHORT FORM NEW MEDIA – ADAPTED

“Chapter Two: Phoebe” (Heroes Reborn: Dark Matters), Written by Zach Craley; nbc.com

 “Part 8” (Fear The Walking Dead: Flight 462), Written by L. Signorino Mike Zunic; amc.com

 “The Summer of Love, Part 1: Meet Charlie” (Aquarius), Written by Mike Moore & David Reed; nbc.com

ANIMATION

“Gayle Makin’ Bob Sled” (Bob’s Burgers), Written by Lizzie Molyneux & Wendy Molyneux; Fox

“Halloween of Horror” (The Simpsons), Written by Carolyn Omine; Fox

“Hank After Dark” (BoJack Horseman), Written by Kelly Galuska; Netflix

“Housetrap” (Bob’s Burgers), Written by Dan Fybel; Fox

“Sky Police” (The Simpsons), Written by Matt Selman; Fox

“Walking Big & Tall” (The Simpsons), Written by Michael Price; Fox

EPISODIC DRAMA

“Explosivos” (Narcos), Written by Andy Black; Netflix

“International Assassin” (The Leftovers), Written by Damon Lindelof & Nick Cuse; HBO

“Mind’s Eye” (The Good Wife), Written by Robert King & Michelle King; CBS

“Mother’s Mercy” (Game of Thrones), Written for Television by David Benioff & D.B. Weiss; HBO

“Person to Person” (Mad Men), Written by Matthew Weiner; AMC

“Uno” (Better Call Saul), Written by Vince Gilligan & Peter Gould; AMC

EPISODIC COMEDY

“Alive in Tucson” (The Last Man On Earth), Written by Will Forte; Fox

“Connection Lost” (Modern Family), Written by Megan Ganz & Steven Levitan; ABC

“Joint Session” (Veep), Teleplay by Simon Blackwell & Georgia Pritchett, Story by Armando Iannucci & Simon Blackwell & Georgia Pritchett; HBO

“Racegate” (Maron), Written by Dave Anthony; IFC

“Rock, Paper, Scissors, Gun” (black-ish), Written by Peter Saji; ABC

“Sand Hill Shuffle” (Silicon Valley), Written by Clay Tarver; HBO

COMEDY / VARIETY (INCLUDING TALK) – SERIES

Conan, Writers: Jose Arroyo, Josh Comers, Andres du Bouchet, Jessie Gaskell, Michael Gordon, Brian Kiley, Laurie Kilmartin, Rob Kutner, Todd Levin, Levi MacDougall, Conan O’Brien, Matt O’Brien, Andy Richter, Frank Smiley, Brian Stack, Mike Sweeney; TBS

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Writers: Dan Amira, Steve Bodow, Travon Free, Hallie Haglund, Elliott Kalan, Matt Koff, Adam Lowitt, Dan McCoy, Jo Miller, Zhubin Parang, Owen Parsons, Daniel Radosh, Lauren Sarver, Jon Stewart, Delaney Yeager; Comedy Central

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Writers; Michael Brumm, Nate Charny, Aaron Cohen, Stephen Colbert, Cullen Crawford, Paul Dinello, Eric Drysdale, Rob Dubbin, Ariel Dumas, Glenn Eichler, Gabriel Gronli, Barry Julien, Jay Katsir, Daniel Kibblesmith, Matt Lappin, Opus Moreschi, Tom Purcell, Jen Spyra, Brian Stack; CBS

Real Time with Bill Maher, Writers: Scott Carter, Adam Felber, Matt Gunn, Brian Jacobsmeyer, Jay Jaroch, Chris Kelly, Bill Maher, Billy Martin, Danny Vermont; HBO

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Writers: Jonathan Adler, Patrick Borelli, Gerard Bradford, Luke Cunningham, Mike DiCenzo, Mike Drucker, Jess Dweck, Dicky Eagan, Caroline Eppright, John Haskell, JR Havlan, Arthur Meyer, A.D. Miles, Chase Mitchell, Dan Opsal, Gavin Purcell, Jon Rineman, Albertina Rizzo, David Young; NBC

COMEDY / VARIETY – SKETCH SERIES

Inside Amy Schumer, Head Writer: Jessi Klein Writers: Hallie Cantor, Kim Caramele, Kyle Dunnigan, Jon Glaser, Kurt Metzger, Christine Nangle, Dan Powell, Tami Sagher, Amy Schumer; Comedy Central

Key & Peele, Written by Colton Dunn, Rebecca Drysdale, Keegan-Michael Key, Phil Augusta Jackson, Jay Martel, Jordan Peele, Ian Roberts, Alex Rubens, Charlie Sanders, Rich Talarico; Comedy Central

Saturday Night Live, Head Writer: Colin Jost, Rob Klein, Bryan Tucker Writers: James Anderson, Jeremy Beiler, Megan Callahan, Michael Che, Mikey Day, Steve Higgins, Zach Kanin, Chris Kelly, Erik Kenward, Dave McCary, Dennis McNicholas, Lorne Michaels, Claire Mulaney, Mike O’Brien, Josh Patten, Alison Rich, Katie Rich, Tim Robinson, Natasha Rothwell, Nick Rutherford, Meredith Scardino, Sarah Schneider, Pete Schultz, Streeter Seidell, John Solomon, Kent Sublette; NBC

COMEDY / VARIETY – MUSIC, AWARDS, TRIBUTES – SPECIALS

The 69th Annual Tony Awards, Written by Dave Boone; Special Material by Adam Goldman, Carol Leifer; CBS

2014 Kennedy Center Honors, Written by Lewis Friedman, Sara Lukinson, Nell Scovell, George Stevens, Jr., Michael Stevens; CBS

2015 Film Independent Spirit Awards, Written by Benji Aflalo, Wayne Federman, Marika Sawyer, Frank Sebastiano, Erik Weiner; IFC

Amy Schumer: Live at The Apollo, Written by Amy Schumer; HBO

Jimmy Kimmel Live: 10th Annual After The Oscars Special, Written by Jack Allison, Tony Barbieri, Jonathan Bines, Joelle Boucai, Greg Dorris, Gary Greenberg, Josh Halloway, Sal Iacono, Eric Immerman, Jimmy Kimmel, Bess Kalb, Jeff Loveness, Molly McNearney, Danny Ricker, Joe Strazzullo, Bridger Winegar; ABC

Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special, Written by James Anderson, Fred Armisen, Tina Fey, Steve Higgins, Chris Kelly, Erik Kenward, Rob Klein, Seth Meyers, Lorne Michaels, John Mulaney, Paula Pell, Jeff Richmond, Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, Tom Schiller, Sarah Schneider, Marc Shaiman, Michael Shoemaker, Robert Smigel, Emily Spivey, Kent Sublette, Jorma Taccone, Bryan Tucker; NBC

QUIZ AND AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION

Hollywood Game Night, Head Writer: Grant Taylor; Writers: Michael AgbabianAlex ChauvinAnn Slichter, Dwight D. Smith; NBC

Jeopardy!, Written by John Duarte, Harry Friedman, Mark Gaberman, Deborah Griffin, Michele Loud, Robert McClenaghan, Jim Rhine, Steve D. Tamerius, Billy Wisse; ABC

DAYTIME DRAMA

The Bold and the Beautiful, Head Writers: Bradley P. BellMichael Minnis Writers: Rex M. Best, Shannon Bradley, Adam Dusevoir, Tracey Ann Kelly, Patrick Mulcahey, Mark Pinciotti, Michele Val Jean; CBS

General Hospital, Writers: Ron Carlivati, Anna Theresa Cascio, Andrea Archer Compton, Suzanne Flynn, Kate Hall, Elizabeth Korte, Daniel James O’Connor, Elizabeth Page, Jean Passanante, Katherine Schock, Scott Sickles, Chris Van Etten; ABC

CHILDREN’S SCRIPT – EPISODIC AND SPECIALS

“Endless Night” (Gortimer Gibbon’s Life on Normal Street), Written by Gretchen Enders & Aminta Goyel; Amazon Studios

“Girl Meets I am Farkle” (Girl Meets World), Written by Mark Blutman; Disney Channel

“Gortimer and the Surprise Signature” (Gortimer Gibbon’s Life on Normal Street), Written by Garrett Frawley Brian Turner; Amazon Studios

“Gortimer vs The Relentless Rainbow of Joy” (Gortimer Gibbon’s Life on Normal Street), Written by David Anaxagoras and Luke Matheny; Amazon Studios

“Ranger vs. The Fabled Flower of Normal Street” (Gortimer Gibbon’s Life on Normal Street), Written by Laurie Parres; Amazon Studios

CHILDREN’S SCRIPT – LONG FORM OR SPECIAL

“Descendants,” Written by Josann McGibbon & Sara Parriott; Disney Channel

DOCUMENTARY SCRIPT – CURRENT EVENTS

“American Terrorist” (Frontline), Written by Thomas Jennings; PBS

“Gunned Down: The Power of the NRA” (Frontline), Written by Michael Kirk & Mike Wiser; PBS

DOCUMENTARY SCRIPT – OTHER THAN CURRENT EVENTS

“Firestone and the Warlord” (Frontline), Written by Marcela Gaviria; PBS

“The Forgotten Plague” (American Experience), Written by Chana Gazit; PBS

“The Great Math Mystery” (Nova), Written by Daniel McCabe; PBS

“Secrets, Politics and Torture” (Frontline), Written by Michael Kirk & Mike Wiser; PBS

TV NEWS SCRIPT – REGULARLY SCHEDULED, BULLETIN, OR BREAKING REPORT

“Cuba” (60 Minutes), Written by Scott Pelley, Nicole Young, Oriana Zill de Granados, Andy Court and Robert Anderson; CBS News

“Yogi Berra Tribute,” Written by Gerald Mazza; CBS Newspath

TV NEWS SCRIPT – ANALYSIS, FEATURE, OR COMMENTARY

“The Storm After the Storm” (60 Minutes), Written by Sharyn Alfonsi, Michael Rey and Oriana Zill de Granados; CBS News

 

Writers Guild Awards 2016: ‘Mr. Robot’ Up for Best Drama, No Love for John Oliver